The invention relates to a hot air extraction vaporizer comprising a heater for heating a substance that generates an aerosol when subjected to heat and mixes into an airflow when this airflow flows through the substance, and can either be inhaled via a mouthpiece after being stored in an intermediate storage volume or can be inhaled directly.
Such therapeutic vaporizer apparatuses for generating aroma and/or active ingredient vapors for inhalation are known from the prior art in various styles. For example, the German patents DE 100 42 396 B4 and DE 198 03 376 C1 are mentioned in this connection. These vaporizers provide thermal vaporization and subsequent inhalation of substances that vaporize under heat and form an aerosol.
Simple hot air in extraction vaporizers only have a heated filling chamber for heating the substance to be vaporized via heat radiation. These are inexpensive to manufacture but provide only a somewhat insufficient vaporization since the non-heated air flowing into the filling chamber and seeping through the substance provided therein has a cooling effect and therefore interrupts the vaporization process. This requires then waiting until the radiant heat of the filling chamber has heated up the substance again to the extent that it can be vaporized. Hot air extraction vaporizers that operate only on the basis of radiant heat are at best suitable for pure substances but are operational only to a limited extent when vaporizing aromas or active ingredients from medicinal herbs.
More efficient is a method where the substance is subjected to a hot airflow that is heated by passing a heat generator. The hot air seeps through the filling chamber holding the substance, wherein the substance vaporizes and its active ingredients, for instance medicinal herbs, are vaporized (extracted) from a substrate and then mixed into the hot air. This hot air may carry for instance all aromas and/or active ingredients is then inhaled as breathing in air after it has been cooled down to a temperature that is comfortable for inhaling, allowing the active ingredients to be absorbed by the lung into the blood circulation. For the purpose of the hot air extraction typically medicinal herbs or other suitable plant substances are used that are shredded to the size that is useful for the purpose of application or possibly also synthetic substances and therapeutic substances that may be provided in form of a powder. It is also possible to vaporize liquid substances. For forming an aerosol, the substances need to be subjected for example to a temperature of for example 390° F. by the hot air. Typical evaporation temperatures range between approximately 250 to 500° F., specifically between 266 and 446° F. (130-230° C.).
For a more effective method for heating air typically a heat exchanger is used that comprises at least one air channel for the air flow that is to be heated up. The air channel may run internally through the heat exchanger or may encompass the heat exchanger from the outside. There are also implementations where electrical heating wires are provided in an open fashion within the air channel. In general, prior art hot air extraction vaporizers implement two basic principles for generating a hot airflow via a heat exchanger. According to one embodiment, the airflow may be generated by sucking out air at an outlet opening or in another alternative embodiment by blowing in air from an inlet opening of the air channel, generating the required high or low pressure either by a person's lung or by using a blower or pump, for instance a membrane pump. By the thermal contact with the heat generator the air from the environment flowing through an inlet of the vaporizer is heated up by the heat exchanger from ambient temperature to for instance 390° F. (199° C.) depending on a temperature and a volume flow through the air channel. The temperature is matched with the boiling or extraction temperature for inhalation of the substance forming the aerosol so that the active ingredients and/or aromas are vaporized by the hot airflow seeping through the filling chamber and the aerosol is carried by the airflow. After passing through the filling chamber with the substance generating the aerosol the airflow carrying the aerosol is provided for breathing in or for inhaling.
However, first of all, the hot airflow as well as the cold substances and the cold filling chamber need to be heated up so that vaporization of these substances is generally possible.
By using hot air extraction vaporizers comprising a pump and an intermediate storage such as for instance a plastic inhalation bag as described in the German patent DE 19803376 C1 the disadvantages are limited since the non-enriched pure air provided for inhalation is mixed with air that has been enriched by the aromas and/or active ingredients before the mixture is inhaled from the intermediate storage. However, applying the present invention to this type of hot air extraction vaporizers including a pump and an intermediate storage would also result in a more effective vaporization.
In contrast, when using hot air extraction vaporizers using a hot airflow that is directly inhaled from the inhaler or sucked in therefrom the problem occurs that at first several breaths are required for heating up the cold substances as well as the surrounding cold filling chamber with the hot airflow since prior to heating up no vaporization can happen. Apart from this process bothering the user, the user is also not aware when exactly vaporization starts.
It is an object of the invention to improve the prior art to the extent that for hot air extraction vaporizers where inhalation is performed straight out of the vaporizer already with the first breathing in and thereafter continuously aroma vapors and active ingredient vapors are provided.